


How Did I End Up Here?

by Zooobly



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Collar, F/M, Forced Bonding, Forced Marriage, I promise, It's not all bad, Light Bondage, M/M, Master of Death Harry Potter, Mpreg, Rape/Non-con - Freeform, Thor (Marvel) is a Good Bro, mindcontrol, temporary memory loss
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-06-03
Packaged: 2020-03-08 10:58:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18893254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zooobly/pseuds/Zooobly
Summary: When Harry awakes in Tony Stark's bed without knowledge how he got there, he knows, he is in trouble. When Tony Stark doesn't know how he got there, either, he is sure Fate hates him. Or well, he corrects when he finds the symbol of the Deathly Hallows tattooed on his skin, maybe not Fate but Death.





	1. Part One

Harry awoke to two voices arguing and a hand shaking his shoulder.

“Five more minutes, Draco…” he grumbled and turned around to bury himself in the silky sheets.

Wait… silky sheets? His bed had cotton sheets. And Draco was back in England while he was – or should be – in New York.  
He startled awake and sat upright, effectively cutting off the voices.  
Harry was in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room with two unfamiliar faces.  
Well, not that unfamiliar.  
Harry’s worry grew as he recognized _Tony Stark_.  
_Tony_ fucking _Stark_.  
Harry groaned.

“Please tell me I didn’t get drunk off my ass and slept with you?” he blurted and then frowned. “I don’t have the usual headache though…”

Mr. Stark spluttered.

“No, we did not have sex. In fact, I was about to ask you who you were and what you are doing in my bed.”

“You mean… fuck. You have no idea how I got here? According to my non-existent headache I wasn’t drunk enough to blackout, but my memory is fuzzy…”

His gaze fell onto the high-tech alarm clock on the bedside table and his eyes widened in shock.

“I’m missing several days! What the…”

He quickly pulled himself together, there was no time to panic. He turned to the other occupants of the room he had ignored during his little freak out.

“Well, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Harry Potter and I don’t know how I got here. Actually, I am missing four days. You are, obviously, Tony Stark, which is just my luck, and I guess you have to be Virginia Potts, the CEO, right?”

“That’s right” Mr. Stark said, “What do you mean, you’re missing four days? You don’t even know what happened here?”

“Where is ‘here’? Am I even still in New York?”

At both Mr. Stark’s and Ms. Potts’ nods Harry let out a breath of relief.

“At least something.”

Then realization dawned on him and his head snapped up again.

“I’m in Stark Tower?!”

Harry cursed his luck and buried his head in his hands. Only him!

“And what happened here that you mentioned it basically first thing?” he inquired, trying to figure out if it had anything to do with his memory loss.

“Uhm, well… “

Only then did Harry notice how uncomfortable Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts suddenly seemed to be.  
The redhead spoke in Mr. Stark’s place: “Maybe you want to change first? It’s a rather lengthy conversation.”

“Change?”

Harry looked down on his chest – his bare chest – and blushed. He quickly gathered the sheets around his body again, which must have fallen away when he stopped holding them up. He let out a breath of relief when he felt that he wore something on his lower body that was hidden beneath the blanket.

“Do you, uhm, maybe have some clothes I could borrow?”

Mr. Stark looked him up and down critically for a moment and then nodded.

“You seem to be about my size, if a bit shorter. Some of my clothes should fit you. The door over there leads to a bathroom, take a shower, maybe get a clearer head. I’m going to leave some clothes on the bed for you.”

Harry nodded and smiled at the man in silent gratitude. As soon as Mr. Stark and Ms. Potts left the room Harry pulled aside the sheets and tried to stand up. Tried being the key word here because the second he moved a stinging pain shot up his backside.  
Harry paled.

“Fuck.”

He ignored the pain and hurried into the bathroom where he stood in front of the mirror. What he saw made his stomach drop.  
His chest and shoulders were covered in hickeys and bitemarks and there were hand-shaped bruises on his hips. His lower body was clad in skin-tight black leggings and a skirt-like piece made of green chiffon. Around his neck –  
Harry gulped and tears started to pool in his eyes. Around his neck he wore a silver collar studded with emerald-green crystals.  
Harry knew what that meant. He closed his eyes and willed the tears away. There was time for that later.  
When he moved to strip the pain made itself known again and his hand instinctively flicked to get his wand out of his arm holster. Only then did he realize – he did not wear his holster. And his wand was nowhere to be seen. Harry frowned in confusion. Then why did he feel the familiar presence of his wand? He took a deep breath. He wasn’t the master of the Elder Wand for nothing. He concentrated on the wands unique signature and willed it to come to him.

“Ow!”

A burning sensation on his right wrist broke his concentration and he opened his eyes.  
A glamour fell away and Harry could see a tattoo of the Deathly Hallows appearing on his right inner wrist.

“What the hell?” he mumbled in awe. He experimentally flicked his hand with a muttered ‘Wingardium Leviosa’ in the direction of the soap. It began to float in front of his face.

“If the wand has merged with me, what about the cloak and the stone?”

The second he thought of the cloak his image in the mirror flickered and then vanished completely.

“Neat.”

He refrained from trying the stone.  
With magic at his disposal again the pain in his ass was quickly dealt with and after a short shower followed by a simple drying charm he went back into the bedroom. Just like Tony said there were some clothes on the bed, waiting for him.  
Harry changed into the comfy sweatpants, the t-shirt and the sweat jacket before getting comfortable on the bed. He sat with his legs crossed and nervously fingered the collar that was almost completely hidden underneath the jacket.  
Harry was now 99% sure his memory loss had a magical reason.  
With a determined look at his new tattoo he sank into a deep meditation. He had to find out what happened to him.


	2. Part Two

“What do you think? Can we trust him?”

Pepper’s question earned her a ‘Did-you-really-just-ask-that?’-look from Tony.  
She sighed and rolled her eyes.

“Okay, stupid question. Do you think he told us the truth? About not remembering anything?”

Tony had a contemplating look on his face.

“Yes, yes I do think so. He looked genuinely shocked and panicked. I wish JARVIS wasn’t shut down. I want to know what happened here the last 24 hours.”

Pepper stayed silent for a moment. Then she spoke up: “The marks on his chest. They looked fresh. Do you think, he was…?” 

She dared not finish the sentence. Tony nodded gravely.

“That’s what it looks like, though I hope for his sake that our suspicion proves wrong. It’s something I do not wish upon anyone.”

A depressing silence hung between them until Pepper cleared her throat.

“The Avengers are coming in about an hour. If Loki has anything to do with Mr. Potter’s lack of memory then maybe Thor can tell us more. We have to tell them anyway if it is related to the events of the last few days.”

Tony nodded, not getting a chance to speak as Pepper continued on.

“And as I know you, I guess you’ll want to do a full background check on Mr. Potter, am I right?”

The twinkle in her eyes and the wink she shot at Tony proved she knew exactly that she was.

“Of course you are, as always!” Tony replied with a cheeky grin and he stole a quick kiss.

“JARVIS, let me know when our guest leaves the room or the Avengers arrive. I’m gonna be down in my workshop.”

And gone he was.  
Pepper could only shake her head with a smile at his antics.  
That man would never change.

~O~

45 minutes later found Tony and Pepper at the door to the room Harry was in.

“And he’s just sitting on the bed?” Tony asked in disbelief.

“Yes sir, it seems like he is meditating. He has not moved for 30 minutes by now.”

What was he doing? Tony was frustrated. He had not been able to find anything of significance about Harry Potter – which was of the highest significance! He had found a birth certificate, a driver’s license, a bank account and school records until the age of eleven. Nothing else. Nada. No further school records, no graduation, no photos except for the official documents, not even records of him ever going to see a doctor. As his contact in the records of his school a family named ‘Dursley’ was listed but Tony hadn’t found anything indicating they had had legal guardianship over him. Tony also wasn’t able to find anything _at all_ on James Potter, Harry’s father according to the birth certificate. He had a little more luck with his mother Lily Potter nee Evans, but all of her records vanished after her eleventh birthday. Only an announcement of her death in November of 1981 in an English newspaper, put in there by Petunia Dursley, apparently Lily’s sister and Harry’s Aunt.    
He wasn’t able to figure Harry Potter out and that was nagging at him.   
At first, he had thought the records were forged, but he had a lot of experience with fake records and those were most definitely real.   
Who was Harry Potter?

“Sir, he just woke up from his trance.”

JARVIS voice shook Tony out of his thoughts.

“Let’s go in. The Avengers will arrive any minute now, we should at least warn him of that.”

Tony nodded in agreement to Pepper’s statement. He knocked on the doo what earned him an incredulous look from Pepper.

“What? I do have manners. Sometimes. If I want to.”

A shaky “Come in” granted them entrance. Tony and Pepper shared a confused and concerned look before entering.  
Harry Potter sat on the bed, a little slouched over. His eyes were red and they could see fresh tear tracks on his cheeks. With one hand he absently fiddled with the collar he still wore while he tried to wipe away the tears with the other.  
Pepper asked softly, “Is everything alright, Mr. Potter?”  
He nodded hastily.

“Yeah, I’m fine. And please, call me Harry. Mr. Potter makes me feel like I’m back in school.”

Tony cracked a grin at that.

“Then I insist you call me Tony. Mr. Stark was my father.”

“And most people just call me Pepper.”

Harry smiled weakly at both of them, the fact he had cried still easily visible on his face. Pepper shot him a concerned look that had Harry averting his eyes.

“I’m fine, really. It’s just… I remember.”

The last part was merely above a whisper.

Those emerald-green eyes fixated on Tony.

“I guess I have to thank you for ending this nightmare. You and the other Avengers.”

Harry protectively wrapped an arm around his middle and seemed to curl into himself. His eyes adopted a resigned look in them.

“It just was too late for me.”

“What do you mean? Too late?” Tony asked confused.

The raven’s hand tightened around the collar but he stayed silent.

“What’s up with that collar? Are you into BDSM or something?”

“Tony!” came an exasperated hiss from Pepper.

A chuckle made her turn to Harry who looked at them with an amused twinkle in his eyes. Pepper couldn’t help but think this expression suited him far better – and made him look even more beautiful.

“This collar has nothing to do with my preference of being tied up during sex – I’m not into S&M, just for the record.”

Tony almost choked on his on spit at the man’s bluntness.   
A bitter tone creeped into Harry’s voice as he continued.

“Rather, it shows my status as a married man.”

Pepper carefully stated “You don’t sound happy about being married.”

A sad smile marred the raven’s face.

“Well, I did not really consent to the marriage.”

His face took a faraway look.

“At least it’s a man. A forced marriage is bad enough, if it was a woman...”

A shudder racked his body at the – seemingly – repulsive thought.

Tony frowned.

“Why don’t you just get divorced?”

Harry was saved from having to answer as JARVIS voice sounded through the room.

“Sir, the Avengers have arrived.”

Harry visibly jumped at the dismembered voice but then a look of understanding crossed his face.

“You must be JARVIS, right?”

“Correct, Mr. Potter. Sir, should I tell the Avengers to gather in the living room upstairs?”

Tony nodded.

“Yes, do that. We will join them in a minute.”

Harry sighed.

“Maybe it’s for the best if I explain my story to all of them. I need to talk to Agent Barton and Thor anyways.”

Pepper and Tony shared a surprised look but the latter just shrugged.

“Sure, whatever. Let’s go!”

As Harry got up his whole demeanour seemed to change. He straightened his back pulling the zipper of the jacket up completely, effectively hiding the collar, and wiped his face clear of tears. He walked out of the door with an unexpected grace and a determination that showed he knew where he had to go. How did he know his way around the tower so well?   
Tony could only repeat his earlier question:   
Who was Harry Potter?


	3. Part Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A review by the user Lunexz over on ff.net pointed out to me that this story reminded him of 'Forever More' by picabone99, again, over on ff.net. I checked the story out and they're right that the premise is quite similar. I did read the story several years ago, but started to write this one last summer and did not remember the other story.  
> So, this story is kind of inspired by 'Forever More' by picabone99 on fanfiction.net  
> Thank you to Lunexz for bringing it to my attention!

Harry stopped in the doorway and examined the group scattered in the living room. His eyes zeroed in very quickly on Thor who sat next to Captain America and talked animatedly with wild gestures. Next his eyes wandered to Clint Barton who was perched on an elevated platform Harry guessed to be only two square foot. Lastly his gaze fell onto the Black Widow and Dr. Banner who talked in low voices a bit away from the group. Harry frowned when he realized they talked in a foreign language he had never heard before but understood nonetheless. With a shake of his head he entered the room, Tony and Pepper who had caught up with him following close behind.

All eyes were on him the second they noticed him and Harry subconsciously stood straighter and let his arms fall beside his torso.  
Harry saw recognition in Clint’s eyes who immediately fell into a defensive stance.

“You!” he hissed.

“Yes, me. I am no threat, I was there as much out of free will as you.”

Clint’s tense position relaxed – just a tiny bit.

“I’m sorry to hear that but I still don’t trust you. I don’t know you.”

Harry nodded in response, as an auror he could respect that. He turned to Thor who had eyed him with narrowed eyes throughout the whole conversation. Then recognition sparked in his eyes too, a different kind than with Clint.

“By Odin!” Thor exclaimed and then did something that took the whole room – maybe except Harry – by surprise.   
The great Thor, the _Nordic god_ , fell to one knee and bowed his head in respect.

“I did not know she had chosen a master. It is an honour to meet you.”

What Harry did in response to that might have shocked the Avengers even more.

“Thor Odinson, the time for you to kneel in front of me has not yet come. And I hope when it comes you will greet me as an old friend and not in fear. We are equals, we are brothers.”

Thor’s head shot up in confusion and Harry revealed the collar beneath his jacket.   
Thor’s eyes grew sad.

“My congratulations and my condolences.”

“Okay, what the fuck is going on?”

Tony sounded positively irritated by now and all other occupants of the room seemed to want some explanations too.   
Harry sighed and flashed a crooked grin.

“I guess I owe you guys some explanations, huh?”

“Hell, yes, you do!” Tony was quick to agree.

Harry silently removed the jacket and sat down on the couch next to Thor on the other side as Captain America.

“Well, what do you know already?” Harry asked with a curious look.

“What?! Uhm, what – what do you mean?”

Tony _actually_ fidgeted at the question. Mirth danced in Harry’s eyes.

“You don’t want to tell me _Tony Stark_ didn’t do a complete background search on the stranger he found in his bed?”

“In his bed?” Natasha intercepted, amusement clear in her voice.

“Long story” Harry waved the question off and turned back to Tony. “So?” He gestured for him to go on.

“Your full name is Harry James Potter, you were born on July 31st 1980 to James Potter and Lily Potter nee Evans and attended school until the age of eleven. You are a British citizen and holder of a driver’s license. You have an allowance to be in the U.S. and you have a bank account with a London bank. Your father doesn’t exist and your mother vanished after her eleventh birthday from all records until her death in October 1981. That’s it. Nothing else was to be found about you.”

Harry seemed surprised.

“They actually put my dad on my birth certificate? I thought they knew better… Given, it is fake, but still.”

“Wait a second, your birth certificate is _fake_?”

Harry shrugged at Tony’s question.

“Yeah. I mean, it is correct except for place of birth, but yes, it is fake. Didn’t get one when I was born for reasons I will elaborate later but I needed one to start school.”

By now everyone was staring at him with wide eyes.

“A full explanation. Right now,” demanded Tony.

Harry sighed.

“Alright. I guess the Statute can be ignored for you, you already know so much, and I am Harry Potter, for Merlin’s sake!”

No one missed his bitter tone.

“Before I start with who I am and why I am here, there’s something you all need to know. It is the reason why Loki took an interest in me and also how I was able to regain my memories of the past few days that I was under his control.”

Thor smiled at him knowingly but he also looked a little worried.

“Are you sure? Considering their experiences of the past 48 hours this might not be a good idea, young _seiðr_.”

Harry knew he shouldn’t be able to understand and much less _speak_ Old Norse but that one word made him switch languages without a conscious thought.

“ _They have to know, Thor. And I can defend myself should they not take friendly to it.”_

_“I do not doubt that. You have my support.”_

Harry gave Thor a grateful smile and then furrowed his brows in confusion.

“I did it again…” he murmured to himself and glanced at his tattoo. Was that the reason why? He shook himself out of his stupor looked at the Avengers with a critical eye.

“What I am about to tell you requires an oath of secrecy from you. You cannot speak about this to anyone who doesn’t already know. Do you swear on your life?”

Thor was first to answer with a confident “I do”. The others followed a bit more reluctantly. Once all had answered with an affirmative the oath took effect and a golden glow encompassed them all, tying their life to the vow they had just taken.

“What the hell was that?!” Natasha hissed and fell into a defensive stance. She even pulled out a knife from _somewhere_ and Clint did the same. Tony, Pepper and Dr. Banner stood there completely baffled and Captain America seemed unsure what to do for Thor just chuckled in good humour.

“I must say, young _seiðr,_ I did not expect that. You just tricked us all into a binding oath!”

Harry shrugged with a smirk. “The Statute of Secrecy exists for a reason and though I will tell them I can’t risk them telling Fury. Not even I could escape Azkaban after that stunt.” He then turned to the completely confused Avengers and simply said “That was magic.”

“Magic doesn’t exist!” was Tony quick to deny.

Clint snorted.

“Yeah, and Loki’s illusions and teleportation were all our imagination.”

“It might just have been. Mind magic is intricate and not many have the control and power to do so. I myself have not. At least not until recently. Now I am not sure…”

Harry’s statement was met with wide eyes and even one or two dropped jaws.

“So, you want to tell us that magic like Loki’s is real and you can wield it too?” Tony’s hand balled into a fist, ready for a fight.

“Yes and no” Harry mused “Loki’s magic is real, but I cannot wield it. My magic is completely different, bound to wording and intent, while Loki’s magic centres around illusion, mind and will.”

“So, you are basically a wizard? With a wand and spells and a pointy hat?” Tony asked in his typical blunt way.

“And flying broomsticks and potion brewing” Harry confirmed with a smile. “And the reason I tricked you into a magical binding vow so you literally can’t tell anyone who doesn’t know yet is that there are millions of people like me. We call ourselves witches and wizards and we live in a society parallel to yours. We call people without magic ‘muggles’, at least in Britain. Here in the US they say ‘No-Maj’. You may have heard about the witch hunts and trials back in history? That’s the reason we went into hiding and the Statute of Secrecy came into effect. Muggles cannot know about us without a valid reason: marriage to a wizard or witch, a magical child being born to muggles, people who came into contact with magic and are vouched for to be trusted with the truth and, of course, the respective heads of state. The Queen and the Prime Minister of Britain know about us, for example. They are in frequent contact with the British Minister of Magic.”

Silence fell across the room as the Avengers digested all the new information they were just given. Thor shot Harry an encouraging smile. Tony, quick thinker that he was, came to the correct conclusion.

“So, I couldn’t find your father because he was born into this parallel society and lived his live without real contact to ours?”

Harry nodded, the faint throbbing of grief still present whenever thinking about his parents and all the others he had lost. Tony’s brows furrowed.

“What about your mother? Why have her records stopped at age eleven? If she met your father, married him and lived with him in… “

He pondered on the right wording. “What do you call your society? Always saying ‘parallel society’ gets confusing.”

“The Wizarding World.”

“Right. If she lived with him in the Wizarding World after marrying him, her records would stop somewhere in her adulthood. But she barely reached it, dying at age 21.”

Harry nodded with a sad smile.

“You’re right. My mother was a witch, a muggle-born witch, born to two non-magical parents. A wizard’s or witch’s magical core develops in their childhood and manifests in bursts of accidental magic, like floating toys or summoning a bottle towards themselves. At age eleven their magical core is stable enough to give it a controlled outlet. Age eleven is the earliest age one can acquire a wand. School for magical children starts for them in September after their eleventh birthday and covers seven years of schooling. Five of those years are the minimum required to gain the right of wielding a wand, that graduation is called the O.W.L.s. A wizard or witch is considered an adult with their seventeenth birthday. Most students turn seventeen in der sixth year or in the summer before their seventh year of schooling at the end of which are the N.E.W.T.s, another level of graduation you can achieve. The N.E.W.T.s give you access to higher positions or better professions as well as further studying. My mother’s records as well as my own stop at age eleven because we were introduced to the Wizarding World and went to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A boarding school, by the way, and the only Wizarding School in Britain. America has more because it is so big, there’s Ilvermorny, the Salem Institute and more that I don’t know of. Hogwarts, together with Beauxbatons in France and Durmstrang somewhere in the North-East, are the best and most well-known schools in Europe.”

Natasha nodded slowly. “You have schools and you said earlier Great Britain has a Minister of Magic. So, you have a government, laws and such institutions as well?”

“Yes. There are the aurors, the magical police you could say. I myself am one, actually. We have regular elections, different political parties, law courts, different departments in the government that have specialized on one specific part of the legislation and almost every country on earth has such institutions. America, for example, has the M.A.C.U.S.A, the Magical Congress of the United States of America. There is even an international institution, the ICW, the International Confederation of Wizards.”

“What does an auror do?” Clint asked curiously.

“Mostly paperwork” Harry laughed. “When I signed up for the Auror Program I thought it would have a little more action. But we basically investigate crimes committed by or on wizards. We also work together with a Division called the Obliviators. Those are wizards and witches that are called when magic was exposed to muggles that shouldn’t know about it. They are specialized in memory charms.”

“You can change or erase memories?!” Dr. Banner exclaimed.

“Yes” Harry confirmed. “Memory charms are very delicate and very much illegal to use without admission from the Wizengamot. The Obliviators are one of the best supervised divisions of all.”

“Okay, so magical people live parallel to us with governments and all that shit. But the real question is: What can you do?” Tony’s eyes shone with childish excitement and the others too looked curious. Some were just better at hiding it than others.

Harry grinned mischievously.

“The better question is what we can’t do. Magic opens so many possibilities and with enough magical power, almost everything is possible.”

Stunned face looked at him in wonder.

“Okay then, what can’t you do?” Tony obviously wanted answers.

“We can’t bring back the dead. There are spells to raise dead bodies into a zombie like state and there is one object that lets you speak with the dead for a limited time but it can make you go insane. The dead are to stay dead. Well, except vampires and ghosts. But Vampires are undead and ghosts just have unresolved issues.” Harry rambled on.

“We haven’t yet found a permanent cure for cancer, sadly. But aside from that we can cure pretty much any injury or illness. One can’t go back in time more than five hours and even that is extremely dangerous. And you would first have to build a Time-Turner for currently there are none in existence. Let’s see, what else… Oh, yeah, while we can do instant transportation, we call it ‘apparition’, there is a limit to the distance. The greater the distance, the greater the risk of bodily harm or even death. But there are other means to travel, Portkey or the Floo-Network for example.”

Stunned silence filled the room. Harry fiddled unconsciously with the collar waiting for the ‘verdict’.

It was Tony who broke the silence.

“Wow. And how do you fit into all that? From what I understand both your parents lived in the Wizarding World and you were born into it. I guess that's why your birth certificate is fake. But why you even needed one and grew up with this Dursley-family is beyond me.”

“Petunia Dursley is the sister of my mother. Both my mother and my father died in 1981 when I was 15 months old so I lived with the relatives of my mother. I needed the birth certificate for school. I actually never knew I was a wizard until I got a letter from Hogwarts on my 11th birthday. It was not the first either, the Dursleys tried to deny me my heritage, they did not like magic.”

A dark look crossed his face. Bruce inquired:

“Wouldn't the relatives of your father have been the better choice then? I would guess that they were magical too or at least knew about magic and could have raised you aware of your heritage.”

Harry nodded slowly.

“You are right. Though my father's parents had already died at that time I had a distant relative not by blood but by marriage, a witch, that would gladly have taken me in. She was married to a muggleborn wizard and had a daughter. But there were circumstances that required me to live with blood relatives of my mother. There was a war. A wizard who had fashioned himself the identity of Voldemort was terrorizing the Wizarding World of Britain. He believed in the superiority of wizards and magical blood as opposed to muggles and wanted to subjugate those he believed to be of dirty blood. The war was at its height in 1980 when a prophecy was made-”

“Wait a second-a fucking _prophecy_?!” Tony spluttered.

“Yes, a prophecy. A real one at that, though rather self-fulfilling. Quick foray: a seer can speak a prophecy which is then recorded in the Department of Mysteries where the Unspeakables try to decipher who or what is meant. There are three types of prophecies: The Unstable Prophecies, the Self-fulfilling Prophecies and the True Prophecies. The Unstable Prophecies are too vague to be ever confirmed as having been fulfilled or simply never come to pass. The Self-fulfilling Prophecies can only come to pass if someone hears them and then chooses to act upon that knowledge or believes them to be True ones. The True Prophecies are the most reliable because they will _always_ come to pass. They are unavoidable. So, in the early months of 1980 a prophecy was spoken that told of a boy being born at the end of July that would have the power to destroy the Dark Lord. Voldemort who went by that title heard that part, the first part, of it from a spy and came to the conclusion that the boy of the prophecy was me and that I would have to die before I grew up to be a threat.”

Natasha looked incredulous.

“Not only did he act upon a _prophecy_ , but an _incomplete_ one? It could have said anything in that second part! That the boy had the power but would use it to aid him or that going after the boy would be what destroys him!”

“His sanity had long since left him,” Harry said dryly. “And indeed, the second part was important. The full prophecy was _The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches … born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies… and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not… and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives … the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…”_

A moment of silence followed Harry’s words, then he cleared his throat and continued.

“On Halloween of 1981 Voldemort came to our house and killed my father, then my mother. He actually gave her a chance to step aside, she did not have to die, but she chose to stand in front of me and die in my stead. He tried to kill me, but the curse backfired and he was reduced to a bodyless wraith. I grew up without knowledge about the Wizarding World with my Aunt and her family. I had to live with blood-relatives of my mum to keep the magic of her sacrifice alive. As long as I lived with her blood, Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, could not find me. About two months before my eighteenth birthday I fulfilled the prophecy and killed him. The war had cost many people their life and it all came to an end in what is now known as the Battle of Hogwarts.”

Faces flashed in front of Harry’s eyes, his parents, Cedric, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, Fred… he blinked away the moisture gathering in his eyes and focused on the Avengers again. Their eyes were filled with sadness and understanding, but thankfully no pity. Thor gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze and Harry smiled.

“Anyway, now that the existence of magic and the basics of my life are covered, let’s get to the part where Loki takes an interest in me, shall we?”

Not giving them a chance to say anything Harry quickly continued.

“I was in New York following a lead on a murder case when I literally stumbled into Loki’s secret lair. I was in a tunnel system underneath the city, parts of which are connected to the underground railway, that, according to my source, was also connected to our main suspects house - without being restricted through wards. Long story short, I took a wrong turn and found myself in Loki’s camp. I was completely taken by surprise and before I knew it basically everyone had a gun pointed at me. Someone actually shot at me, hit my shoulder and I, well, I stumbled and fell over. I hit my head on the edge of a table and…”

Harry grinned sheepishly and rubbed his neck.

“And I, uh, died, kind of?”

For the second time that day the sight of six dropped jaws greeted him.


End file.
